Cross Roads, page 14
“Grasshopper?”
“Never mind.” Rohan bent forward, rested his forearms on his knees. “I got elected to the team leader position, which basically meant I got stuck doing eighty percent of the work. Not only did I have to ensure the three other students stayed motivated and liaison with the company president, I also had to keep my instructor updated, write my share of code, and check everyone else’s work.”
All the old frustrations bubbled in his stomach like fermenting kimchi.
“Neff’s sister, Crystal, who was also an investor, attended the meetings. A month into the project, we began seeing each other.”
“What’d everyone think about the new arrangement?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t care. I was young and arrogant and, by that time, fed up with my teammates doing minimal work and getting the same credit as me.”
“Did you talk to them about it?”
“Not in any formal, sit-down way, but they all knew I wasn’t happy with their performance. Soon after the project started, one of the guys—Bruce—began subverting my directions.”
“Let me guess,” she said. “You were either a supreme asshole or Bruce was pouting because he didn’t get the leadership position.”
Ignoring her first suggestion, he said, “I voted for him to take the lead. He was smart and talented, and I sure as hell didn’t want the role. Unfortunately, he was less likable.”
“What happened to the sister? Did you break her heart?”
He raked a thumb over the calluses on his palm. A result of building and breaking down props in the shoot house, a large building on the property where they set up detailed scenarios for their recoveries before executing them in real-time.
“We got pretty hot and heavy, which meant spending less time with the team, less time checking their work. When they realized I’d kicked them off my coattails, they got more serious about contributing. Bruce fielded questions that came up. Everything seemed to be going great until I returned from a long weekend in the Outer Banks with Crystal.”
All these years later, the memory of walking into the owner’s conference room still had the power to produce sweaty palms and a racing heart.
“At our weekly check-in, I learned that not only had the company’s server been breached, but the hacker had stolen the energy bar recipe and blasted it across the Internet.”
Lena sucked in a breath. “Their proprietary IP was no longer a secret.”
“The company was ruined, and my teammates stared at me as if I’d betrayed them. Worst of all, Mrs. Holland, my instructor and mentor, looked at me with a mixture of disappointment and empathy.”
“Why empathy?”
“She knew—” He swallowed back a sudden lump that formed in his throat. “She was the one who’d encouraged me to socialize, to make more friends, to date, to do something besides write code and play video games.”
“So you did,’’ she whispered.
“My selfishness cost a good man his livelihood and my mentor retired early to take the heat off the school.”
His gaze caught hers. “Know what happened to me?”
She shook her head.
“Nothing. Not a damn thing I didn’t force.”
“What do you mean ‘force’?”
“I insisted on getting an F for the project.”
“But it was your senior seminar, your last class.”
Instead of walking the stage with the rest of his classmates, he’d taken the class over and received his diploma in the mail a year later.
“I paid a small price for ruining a family.”
“And Crystal?”
“I broke it off.”
“Why?”
"I just…couldn’t any longer.” He raked his right thumb against his left palm, over and over, as if he could rub away the past. “Every time I looked at her, she was a reminder of what I had done. What I had failed to do. The guilt became too much.”
“Did you love her?”
“I could have, I think. Had things been different.”
Lena slid off the bed and knelt before him, wrapping her warm hands around his. “It wasn’t your fault.”
Her simple act of compassion squeezed his heart until he was sure not a single bead of blood moved through the damaged organ.
“The hell it wasn’t. My team, the instructor, the owner—they all put their faith in me to do what I do best.”
“And you did.’’
“You don’t understand.” He shot out of the chair, ripping his hands from her grip. He didn’t need her empathy. Didn’t deserve it. “I left them to finish the last of the project. Practically dared them to try to do it without me.” He gave her a level, unfiltered look. “I knew they didn’t have the collective know-how and was damn smug about it.”
“Your teammates were responsible for their own actions—or lack thereof. If they didn’t know how to finish the project, they should have spoken to Mrs. Holland.”
“As team leader, it was my responsibility to see the project through to completion and to protect the client’s assets.”
“Was it? Seems like a lot of responsibility to put on the shoulders of one student.”
“I could’ve handled it. But I failed because I allowed my dick to swim in the deep end too long.”
“Don’t,” she said in a harsh voice. “Don’t cheapen what you had with Crystal because shit happened. You’re allowed to have a life.”
Rohan squeezed the back of his neck, wishing he’d kept the past where it belonged. “You won’t be so generous when you hear how I went from one bad decision to another.”
27
Lena rose from her kneeling position and crossed her arms to prevent herself from sliding them around Rohan’s waist. The urge to press her ear against his thundering heart was so strong her hands shook.
More than a decade later, and he still hadn’t forgiven himself for the stolen IP. The entire incident sounded like a perfect storm, one where no one triumphed and no one survived without deep, visceral scars.
“Rohan, please sit and finish your story. What happened next?”
After a moment’s hesitation, he sat on the corner of the bed and stared at the worn-down carpet as if he watched scenes from his past being played out on the rust and black checkered pattern. “Something about the hack felt personal.”
“In what way?”
“Why attack Troy Neff’s company? Although things were coming together for him, his was still a small business. Hardly worth the effort. Blasting the recipe across the Internet rather than selling it to Neff’s competition or holding it for ransom smelled a lot like revenge to me.”
“Let me guess, your teammate, Bruce, decided to knock you out of the game.”
“Good presumption, but it wasn’t Bruce.”
When he remained silent for a full minute, Lena prodded, “How did you track down the hacker?”
“By becoming one.”
“A hacker?”
He nodded. “I followed the thief’s digital footprint to a guy named Cal Simmons. Turns out, Troy had hired him prior to partnering with the university. But their personalities didn’t jive, and Cal’s technical skillset had its limitations. After a few months of head-to-head combat and disappointing performance, Troy finally fired him.”
“Classic disgruntled employee retaliation. If Cal’s skillset sucked so badly, how did he manage to hack his way to the secret recipe?”
“He must’ve had help.”
“Evidently, his hacker friend was only slightly better, since they failed to cover their tracks.”
Rohan shrugged. “Don’t know, don’t care. Cal was the one who had set things in motion. I held him responsible for the attack against the Neffs.”
“How much time did he serve for the cyberattack?”
“None.”
“Seriously?”
“I didn’t turn him in.”
A note of savagery entered his voice, kicking up Lena’s pulse. In an instant, she understood. An eye for an eye. What comes around goes around.
Cal Simmons had ruined the Neff family, so Rohan had responded in kind. “What did you do?”
“I tore his life apart, page by page, until there was nothing left of it but chaff.” He met her eyes. “And I don’t regret one damn bit of it.”
Lena thought she should feel something for Cal Simmons’s plight, but not so much as a twinge of sympathy surfaced. “Does Troy Neff know what you did?”
Rohan shook his head. “He received a sizable, anonymous donation, which he used to jumpstart a successful plant-based meal delivery service.”
“I don’t see what you did as being a poor decision.”
“I don’t regret what I did to Simmons. The bastard had it coming. What I regret, what’s led us to this motel in the middle of nowhere was my decision to join the Collective.”
“Why does the word cult immediately come to mind?”
“It was, in a way. A twenty-first-century faction of hackers from across the globe. All anonymous.”
“What did they believe in? Did they have a particular ideology?”
“When the law failed or the political will was nonexistent, the Collective served out its version of justice.”
“Vigilante justice?”
“That’s one side of the fence.”
“And the other?”
“Guardian justice.”
“Sounds like a great glob of contradiction to me.” Lena picked up one of the water bottles, ignoring the sandwich, and dumped the contents into her tumbler, then took a long drink. “I thought the guardian mentality believed in communication over use of force.”
“By the time the Collective gets involved, a lot of talking has already taken place. Even so, we gave the target two options with their associated consequences. Some—many—choose the wrong path.”
“Then what?”
“Digital apocalypse.”
What she knew about Rohan and his family could fit inside a paint tube. But something told her he’d joined such a group on the strength of a young man’s fury and guilt, not because he wanted to become judge, jury, and digital executioner.
“Is the Collective like the mob? You’re in until death do you part?”
“Yes and no.”
She dropped her chin and gave him a professorial over-the-eyeglasses-rim look. “Are we really going to do this again?”
He kneaded the muscles at the back of his neck. “I got out, and now they’re letting me know they didn’t agree with my decision.”
“How long ago?”
“About six months.”
“Are they responsible for disabling our phones?”
He nodded. “I got the first hint they’d uncovered my identity yesterday when I had to fend off a strong cyberattack against BARS.”
The Verge was nothing but a computer on four wheels. Vulnerable like any other device plugged in to the Net. “Your car?”
“Seems a little too coincidental to be anything else. I should never have purchased a vehicle manufactured in this century. They’re too connected, too vulnerable. I knew the Collective’s reach.”
“But you thought you could outwit them?”
“Maybe.” His gaze caught and held hers. “Or maybe I was too attracted to her sleek lines and her intuitive interface.”
Lena released a shallow breath. She couldn’t get caught up in this man’s hotness right now. A lot of questions were stacked up in her mind, and Rohan had the answers.
She looked toward the drab green-and-red striped curtains covering the windows. “Do they know where we are?”
“It’s doubtful they know our exact location.”
But not out of the question, she thought, reading his body language.
“Is this how hackers get their jollies?” she asked. “By making their targets feel helpless and alone?”
“It’s one way.”
“Is that why you paid cash for the room? Our credit cards are dead, too?”
“More than likely. Plus credit cards leave a digital trail.”
“They’re online terrorists.”
“That’s not how they see themselves. That’s not how I saw myself.”
She recalled the term he used earlier. “White hat.”
“Activist.”
The situation reminded her of something she read online about a group of organized hackers who’d disrupted Russia’s state TV channels by broadcasting footage of the war in Ukraine.
“You’re part of a hacktivist group?”
“Was.”
“Do you wear a white mask while lurking in the digital shadows, collecting bits and bytes of information to use against your prey?”
He gave her a sidelong glance. “My preference leans more toward Scooby-Doo pajamas.”
Lena’s stomach felt like the Mystery, Inc. van was doing doughnuts inside. “How far will this prank go?”
“This wasn’t a prank, Lena. Hacktivists are serious about their craft. They’re some of the most tenacious people on the planet and won’t stop until they achieve their goal.”
“Which is?”
“My best guess? They either want me to return to the fold or they’re intent on total destruction. Me, my family, our business,” his voice lowered. “You.’’
“Me?”
“Unfortunately for you, they believe you’re important to me. We’ve spent time together, you’re staying at my family’s estate, and now we’re road-tripping together.”
She couldn’t help but wonder if a tiny part of him cared about her. Their kiss had felt real enough. But maybe he was once again slaking his curiosity.
“I’ve become collateral damage in a techno-geek pissing war.”
“I’m sorry, Lena. This is the last thing you need to be sucked into right now.”
She waved off his apology. “Tomorrow, we’ll find a car rental place, and I’ll continue on to Atlanta while you head back to Steele Ridge.”
“Not happening.”
“I’m perfectly capable of feeling out the art dealer on my own and you need to get to a computer.”
“Give me some credit here. I didn’t leave the Collective with blinders on. I took precautions.” He glanced at his watch. “They’ll hold until I can get my hands on a computer.”
“Which could take hours, if not days. Who knows if the mechanic’s shop will even be equipped to fix your car. It’s doubtful if they have a lot of experience repairing seventy-five-thousand-dollar hacked vehicles.”
“Getting a computer won’t take days.”
A sick feeling swirled in Lena’s stomach. “How long?”
The smile he sent her was warm and sexy and knowing. Her brain lit up like a firework. “This place might be clean, but I’m not staying here beyond tomorrow.”
“Agreed.”
He toed off his shoes.
“What are you doing?”
“Making myself comfortable. I suggest you do the same.”
Lena inventoried the furniture in the small room for the hundredth time since entering. One full-sized bed and two nightstands. A chair that looked more like a torture device. No couch. Not even a cushy carpet to lie on.
She would either have to sleep standing up or share the bed with Rohan. Since equestrian DNA didn’t grace her body, she only had one true option.
Sleep beside Rohan.
Frustratingly, the idea didn’t disturb her as much as it should.
Slipping beneath the covers, she rolled to face the center of the bed, not wanting to put her back to him. “Keep your hands to yourself, or I’ll remove your ability to make little Rohans in the future.”
When silence met her threat, she opened her left eye and found him staring down at her. A secret smile, bordering on cocky, tilted one side of his mouth.
He pulled off his shirt, revealing a broad chest and ripped abdomen.
All the saliva in her mouth disappeared as he reached for the bedside lamp and plunged them into darkness. She half expected him to call her bluff. But all he did was ease his big body onto the bed and wish her a good night.
Lena ignored the stab of disappointment and closed her eye again. With him so close, she didn’t think she could fall asleep.
Hours later, a door slammed and jolted her awake. She glanced up from where she slept on a sliver of the bed, then at the gorgeous, sleeping man who reclined against the headboard next to her.
Rohan.
His bare chest rose on even breaths. One thumb hooked around his jeans belt loop, as if to prevent his arm from dangling off the side.
Near his hip, their fingers had tangled together, and she wondered who had reached for whom. Lena tried not to think about how warm his skin felt against hers or how nice it was to wake up beside such a powerful body.
It had been a while since she’d made a physical connection with a guy, and she was grateful she hadn’t strayed from her side of the bed in some nocturnal search for comfort.
Rohan cracked open an eye. “Morning.”
She eased her hand away and repositioned her pillow before sitting next to him. “I forgot how inconsiderate people staying in places like this can be.”
“Inconsiderate guests aren’t limited to sixty-nine-dollar motels.”
“I suppose you’re right.” She reached for her phone, then remembered it had been hacked. “What time is it?”
“Almost five.” He considered her a moment. “Have you spent many nights in motels like this?”
“A few. When I was younger.” She brushed her hand over the bedcover that appeared to be made out of the same fabric as the curtains. “But most of the time, a room like this didn’t fit into my budget.”
“What happened when you were fourteen?”
An image of Neil’s pain-filled eyes and her mad dash into the night flashed through her mind. She closed her eyes for a moment, pushing back the fear, the pain, the uncertainty that never seemed to be far away.
“I’m going to take a shower.” She swung her legs off the bed and rose. “Then I’ll ask Ruthie if there’s a car rental place nearby.”
“Still determined to ditch me, huh?”
His sleep-roughened voice slid down her spine like a velvety touch.
“Our responsibilities are pulling us in opposite directions. Not me.”
